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U.S. vows to increase pressure on DPRK, ruling out new round of six-party talks

[December 17, 2012]

U.S. vows to increase pressure on DPRK, ruling out new round of six-party talks

WASHINGTON, Dec 17, 2012 (Xinhua via COMTEX) --
The United States on Monday
vowed to increase pressure on the Democratic People's Republic of
Korea (DPRK) over its repeated breach of obligations, and ruled
out renewal of six-party talks for now over the denuclearization
issue on the Korean Peninsula.

State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland made the comments
as some Republican lawmakers have criticized the Obama
administration's approach to Pyongyang over its failure to stop
the Asian nation from further developing its nuclear and missile
programs.

She referred again to the DPRK's launches of two satellites in
April and last week as well as its abrogation of agreements in
response to Washington's efforts to pursue a dialogue with its new
leadership.

"So, in the context of the consultations that we're having now
with our six-party counterparts and in New York, what's left to us
is to continue to increase the pressure on the North Korean
regime, " Nuland said at a regular news briefing.

"And we're looking at how best to do that, both bilaterally and
with our partners going forward, until they get the message," she
added. "We're going to have to continue to further isolate this
regime."
The UN Security Council has condemned DPRK's fresh satellite
launch, but is still continuing consultations on "appropriate
response."
Nuland ruled out renewal of six-party talks at the moment,
saying "We and our partners are not in the business of rewarding
them. So I would not look for that kind of a move now."
The six-party talks involve the U.S., the DPRK, the Republic of
Korea, China, Russia and Japan.